Miller v. State
309 Ga. 549
| Ga. | 2020Background
- Night of April 21, 2012: after an altercation outside a nightclub, Miller and co-defendant Javonta Harris followed a Jeep carrying Robinson, Lawrence, and Sheppard; shots were fired from Miller’s Kia Sorento, Robinson was shot in the head and later died.
- Indictments and convictions: Miller was indicted on counts including malice murder, felony murder, three aggravated assaults, and three firearm counts; a jury convicted him on all counts and he received life for malice murder plus additional terms; the felony-murder count merged/vacated.
- Key evidence: multiple .380 shell casings at scene; .380 ammunition in Miller’s bedroom closet and a .380 casing in the Sorento; Harris removed casings and disposed of firearms; pretrial statements from Miller’s girlfriend and friend that Miller admitted shooting.
- Mid-trial juror contact: on day three the judge discovered texts between a juror and the judge’s secretary (content unrelated to evidence, jokey reference to doughnuts); screenshots were reviewed at counsel’s request, defense sought excusal and an alternate was seated; Miller did not request further inquiry or object to the excusal procedure.
- Appellate posture and result: Miller appealed alleging plain error for excusing the juror without a hearing under Remmer; the Georgia Supreme Court affirmed convictions (finding evidence sufficient) but vacated the aggravated-assault conviction against Robinson as merged with the murder.
Issues
| Issue | Miller's Argument | State's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Juror private communication / excusal | Trial court erred by excusing a juror who privately texted the judge’s secretary without a hearing to determine prejudice (invoking Remmer) | Judge reviewed texts, saw no undue influence; defense requested excusal and did not seek further inquiry or preserve objection | No reversible error; Miller did not preserve claim for ordinary review and Georgia law does not allow plain-error relief here |
| Sufficiency of evidence | (No challenge) | Evidence supports convictions | Court performed independent Jackson review and found evidence legally sufficient |
| Scope of plain-error review in Georgia | Plain error should apply to unpreserved juror-contact issue | Georgia limits plain-error review to specific circumstances (per statute & case law) | Court declined to extend plain-error review; claim fails (citing Keller) |
| Merger / sentencing | (Not raised on appeal) aggravated-assault sentence duplicates murder | No evidence of an aggravated assault independent of the act causing death | Aggravated-assault conviction/sentence as to Robinson vacated (merged into malice murder) |
Key Cases Cited
- Remmer v. United States, 347 U.S. 227 (1954) (federal rule requiring inquiry into extraneous juror influence)
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (1979) (standard for sufficiency of the evidence review)
- Keller v. State, 308 Ga. 492 (2020) (Georgia limits plain-error review to statutory categories)
- Favors v. State, 296 Ga. 842 (2015) (aggravated assault merges with murder when no independent assault occurred)
- Bozzie v. State, 302 Ga. 704 (2017) (preservation required for appellate review of trial errors)
- Grimes v. State, 296 Ga. 337 (2014) (same: preservation principles)
- Ensley v. State, 294 Ga. 200 (2013) (same: need to raise juror-contact issues at trial)
- Stewart v. State, 299 Ga. 622 (2016) (cited regarding procedure and related sentencing notes)